Israel has warned residents of the northern part of the Gaza Strip to start moving south. According to Middle East analyst Nomi Bar-Yaacov, a negotiated solution would be better but is currently unrealistic.
Therefore, Israeli soldiers are expected to enter Gaza soon. "Every place where we know there are Hamas activists and leaders, we attack," says the Israeli army according to Ritzau.
Residents advised to move
Residents in the northern part of the Palestinian self-governing area of the Gaza Strip are being advised to move to the southern part of the territory, specifically south of the Wadi area. Israel has informed the United Nations of this, reports Reuters.
Israel has not specified why residents of northern Gaza are being advised to move south.
According to a Hamas representative, Israel's warning is 'false propaganda.'
The representative advises Gaza residents not to 'fall for it,' reports Reuters. The UN strongly appeals to Israel to withdraw the warning to avoid a 'catastrophic situation,' says Stephane Dujarric, UN spokesperson. "The UN considers it impossible for such a move to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences," says Dujarric.
In response to the UN, an Israeli UN envoy called the reaction 'shameful.' The UN spokesperson also emphasized that Israel's warning applies not only to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip but also to all UN employees, including those at UN-established schools, health centers, and clinics.
The Gaza Strip has been heavily bombed since the armed Palestinian group Hamas launched its bloodiest attack in half a century against Israel. At least 1,537 Palestinians have died in the attacks, according to the Palestinian self-government's health ministry, and more than 6,000 have been injured.
